Pen & Ink Drawing Tutorials | How to draw realistic scales on fish, dragons, snakes, reptiles 

Seven years later I came to thank you for this tutorial.

WOW! Now THIS is how it's supposed to be explained. Most teachers just get away by saying "Practice" or something vague. I needed some logical explanation as well and this was perfect. Thanks!

So you do two types/steps of shading here: the shading of the individual scales to give the texture and the shading of the main shape as a cylinder. Your tutorials are great.

Cool! now what about drawing the part where the snake body curls?

All my life I've used my pets as live models for my sketches. Turns out nothing has been more difficult for me than drawing my snake. I've had the little guy for a little over a year and I've never been able to do him justice. Snake morphology is deceptively simple, but right now I won't stop until I get a decent pet portrait for my wall! Thanks for breaking it down like this. It may have been 7 years but your video is still one of the best explanations here on youtube.

Not only is this gentleman a GREAT ARTIST, But also a god AMONG MEN.!!!

This video definitely helped me understand how to draw scales. I usually just doodle but now I have something I want to draw and challenge myself with.

Thank you so much for this very detailed tutorial! I am drawing a mermaid right now and I'm gonna try my best to follow all these steps on her tail 🧜‍♀

I saw this tutorial years ago... I stopt drawing later on and now I'm picking it up again. And this video came across again. It's the best tutorial on scales there is on youtube. Thank you so much!

Even though the snake im doing is in acrylic paints, i still learned alot about shading. Thanks

You explain this very well and quickly, much appreciated!

THANK YOU!! This was so helpful, because before I would've just added some semicircles and called it done but this was an amazing explanation!!

Why did i JUST stumble across this?!? Like I've been waiting for tutorials like these for so long!

Wow! This helps a lot with my art career in the future! It was great!

I'm getting better at drawing incredibly quickly because of your tutorials... every time I finish a drawing I am really amazed!

This was multiple kinds of helpful for me. Some of those terms and concepts you mentioned are things I've been covering in art class but it hadn't occurred to me that they apply like this. I bet a lot of these same concepts about the overlapping 3d shapes and giving value through shadows would also apply to something like drawing feathers.

something so simple makes a world of difference..............thanks just proves technique is everything

Bookmarked and followed! Just to echo that last comment, you're a great teacher. Thanks for explaining why these techniques work instead of just doing them and expecting folks to pick up on it. I'm a bigtime newb and this was really understandable to me.

This video was absolutely helpful right now! Just what I needed, plus a very useful lesson on shading. Thanks :)

Thank you. Such a profound artist and teacher.

Thank you for taking the time to do this! I learned a lot!!!

This is really great! I’m trying to teach myself how to draw really well and this is fantastic. I was hoping you could do a step-by-step of ocean waves? I have tried very hard to follow other artist on RU-vid, but I just can’t grasp what they’re doing. Your teaching style seems like something I’m able to grasp. I sure would appreciate it.

This was the first of your videos that I ever watched, and honestly, thank you so much for doing these tutorials. As an art student working on technique, these videos are so helpful. Thanks for being awesome!

Alphonso you are always inspiring. When ever I do nat know what to explore in terms of drawing I just put on one of your videos and I'm ready to go. Thank You.

Now... I'm ready to draw sneks! Awesome tutorial btw ^^

Always felt intimidated drawing scales, you made it easier to understand. Thank you!

You're awesome! I will be parking here for awhile soaking it all in!! TFS!

Could you do a video explaining how to draw the curved part of the scales? For now I'll keep practicing

So darn cool and pretty easy ❤

Thank you so much, you really explained it in a way I could understand!

Thanks for the tutorial, really useful for my drawing and it made it look realistic and cool :D

Your shading techniques is interesting. I shall scan through your videos to learn more. Thank you for taking the time to produce these tutorials.

This is probably the best art video I have watched

Awesome demo, thank you!

thanks for this demo. you covered it very well

love your tutorials thank you

man, your vids are teaching me so many thing. Thank you.

THIS IS WHAT I NEED, THANK YOU!

Thanks for this video. It was exactly what I needed to see. Well done.

Great video, very helpful !

you give great tutorials :) thanks for putting them up here, keep it up!

muito obrigado as suas aulas estão sendo de grande ajuda.sou muito fã de desenhar.

YOUR ARE TRUE TEACHER THE BEST I HAVE HAD and I HAVE TRIED 10 OR 12 INSTRUCKER IN MY 45 YEARS OF DRAWING . I AM BASICLY SELF TAUGHT .AND KEEP REPEATING THE SAME MISTAKES OVER AND OVER .THEN I STARTED WHATCING YOU VIDEO AND IT IS ALL FALLING IN TO PLACE THANK YOU SO MUCH . I SPEN MANY HOURS STUDYING YOU SURE HELPED ME

your really the best on RU-vid. i learn so much from you're video's. Thanks a lot. Greetz from Holland ;)

what a fun exercise, thanks for sharing!

Best tutorial on RU-vid ! Thanks a lot

Wow you really know what your doing, great drawing and vid.thanks for doing the tutorial.

could you make a video about your favorite art books you have learned from? I have never seen a book or anything from what I could learn as much as from you.

Great lesson, thanks.

i am so grateful i found your amazing tutorials thx

awesome lesson and explanation

Super super helpful! Thank you

Uff just what i need! Helped me a lot! Thanks! :)

Thank youuu! So helpful :-)

you sir have earned yourself a subscriber

ur advice helped me a lot to do some really awesome textures

Wery good tutorial - simple and at the same time vovering everything important! Thank you :)

Thank you for sharing your valuable techniques and skills with a very great full new comer. Your teaching voice is calm and confident which makes me feel I can do this too. 13:41

Oh my gpd, thank you sooo much! This is exactly what I needed to know. I'm currently competing in a school competition about drawing animals and I really wanted to draw a snake with a flower but I couldn't do the scales correctly. Wish me luck on the comp!

This was so very helpful. Thank you! 😄

thank you alphonso this is really helpful :)

thank you so much Alphonso..this helped so much...SUBSCRIBED :D

You are the best on You Tube.

Thank you so much for doing these videos!

Excellent, thank you.

I'm going to be up for a while trying to draw a snake lol Great did BTW! Thanks!

Great explanations

Wow! This is super useful! Thnx 👍👍👍👍

So very well explained thanks very useful

Thank you, this video was very helpful with my fish drawing!

Thank you, you're a big help with my new art work....☺️

this is a very good tutorial but it looks so easy but its hard for me to do

you could make a video about drawing bones and skulls? I'm improving a lot since I saw their video lessons! Thank you so much!!

Really nice tutorial, thank you very much!

Thank you so much This video helped me a lot

Great advice. I've subscribed!

Thanks a lot! This helped me drawing Ariel's tail 😃👍😊

Sweet tut man keep at it you have impressed me :D

I agree with Surya Seshan. In depth detail and explanation create for better logic and understanding of knowledge given sometimes

That was dope

Explained perfectly.

You're a good teacher

Very helpful tutorial. Thanks:)

Huh. This video is really helpful!

Hey Alphonso !! I'm so excited today because I just received the Micron pens that I ordered !! I was using staedler before, and I was using them for architecture but never managed to draw with them, I felt that they were pretty uncomfortable when I was trying to draw ! I've watched your videos for a while now and I finally decided to buy myself these micron pens :D They are awesome ! And this video is the first thing I tried doing with them. Turned out pretty cool !!! Of course I still got work (the grid was the most difficult part for me hahah) but I'm very happy ! Thank you !!!!! o^.^o

Hi!! This is a great tutorial, well done! It helped me a lot for sure, but I was wondering how to deal with colors then? In black and grey it is cool but could you do the same colored? :s Thank you :)

How do I get your book? Any way I can get it by paying by check?

Thank you so much for the video 🤍

THANK YOU!

Woooow, this is gold! My oroboros will be much better thanks to you 😀.

Thanks for this :D about to start working on a Kukulkan (its a mayan god). Hopefully it turns out well!

Thanks u so much thats looks so good I learned SO much

awesome channel -- great great great -- liked and subscribed :)

No entendí nada pero me sirveeee, muchas gracias bro

Hi, what kind of pen are you using?

great helped me a lot...btw wat pen r u using

Good work! ignore bad comments, very well explained. LIKE

I am not a genius. "Some people are JUST geniuses."--Alphonso Dunn. Just sticks in my head like a jingle.

Yours look like perfect scales while my sophomoric effort seems like a stone covering. I hope pratice will help but I think my skills are limited to a "cartoon" look. Eg flat and 1 diminsionial. I just wish I took more than 1 art class in college.

thanks, this video is vey helpful.